Climbing toy



Oct. 16, 1956 H. A. ALMOSLINO 2,766,551

CLIMBING TOY Filed May 26, 1954 INVENTOR.

AGENT CLIMBING TOY Hans Arnold Almoslino, Hollis, N. Y. Application May 26, 1954, Serial No. 432,417

3 Claims. (Cl. 46-132) This invention relates generally to improvements in amusement and entertainment devices and is a continuation-in-part of my copending application, Serial No. 407,384, filed Feb. 1, 1954.

In such application, there is disclosed the movement of a body by using alternately tightened and slackened flexible elements, which pass through side by side oblique openings in the body and which, as they are alternately tightened and slackened, cant the body from side to side in alternate positions at acute angles to the at rest position of the body, transverse to the axes of the flexible elements. The flexible elements are in the nature of a piece of flexible cord which has its free ends fixed in side by side spaced relation and has its center looped about a rotatable dowel, which is rotated first in one direction and then in the other to alternately tighten and slacken the sections or reaches of the cord, which pass through the openings in the body. Such rotational movement of the dowel is achieved in various ways but basically involves a clockwise rotational movement to tighten one reach and slacken the other and then a counterclock wise rotational movement to slacken the one reach and tighten the other. As the reaches are alternately slackened and tightened, the body is turned about its ends and moved in such cantry fashion from the fixed ends of the reaches up to the dowel or similar rotatable operator. In other words, when one reach is tightened, the body is turned at one end by such tightening, the oblique opening in such turned end of the body then being aligned with the tightened reach. At the same time, the opposite. end, on the slackened reach is moved toward the dowel. Thus, the end on the tightened reach forms a pivot for the body which turns toward the dowel about such end.

The primary object of the present invention is to pro-. duce such movement on the sections or reaches of a flexible cord or similar element by moving the ends thereof, which in my prior application were fixed. Thus, the present invention contemplates the provision of means mounting the flexible element or elements in such a fashion that the movement thereof is caused by a movement of the previously fixed ends and not by a rotation of a dowel, on which the element or elements may be looped.

In the present invention the reaches of the single flexible element or side by side separate flexible elements, on which the body is positioned by virtue of oblique passages therein, are bodily moved about the opposite fixed center or ends of the element or elements. Preferably, though not restrictively, such movement is in the nature of a free swinging pendulous movement.

Thus, another object of the present invention is to provide a connecting member for connecting the lower ends of a pair of vertically disposed, side by side flexible elements and to provide means fixedly attaching the upper ends of the elements to a fixed support, so that the connecting member may be swung back and forth and, as it executes its pendulous motion effect an alternate tightening and slackening of the flexible elements.

The invention, therefore, further contemplates the fixtates Patent i 2,766,551 Fatented Oct. 16, 1 956 ing of the upper ends of the flexible elements or the upper center of a single flexible element so that the flexible elements or the reaches of the single element swing about such points or point as a radius and, as they swing, they are alternately tightened and slackened to cause the body to climb up toward the fixed points or point.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a simple and inexpensive amusement device, which can be made in many attractive forms and embodying various figures and backgrounds, and which can be easily operated to automatically produce the climbing action of a body of any simulative nature on the reaches of the flexible element or on the side by side separate flexible elements.

The foregoing and ancillary objects are attained by this invention, the preferred embodiments of which are set forth in the following description and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of one form of the moving object device;

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view thereof;

Fig. 3 is a front elevational view of another form of the moving object device, and

Fig. 4 is a side elevational view of the form of Fig. 3.

Referring initially to the form of Figs. 1 and 2, the numeral 10 designates a support, which can be suitably fixed on a wall, held in the hand or disposed vertically above a horizontal base by suitable vertical supports. The support 10 is shown as flat and as fixed to a wall by fasteners but such is merely exemplary for the purpose of illustrating the operation of the device. Projecting laterally from the face 12 of the support is a fixed dowel 14, which is suitably rigidly fixed to the face or may be integral with the support.

A single elongated section 16 of a suitable flexible material, such as a cord, string or the like, is looped at its center, as at 78, around the dowel and the independent sections or reaches 20 and 22 depend therefrom.

The reaches have their lower ends suitably fixed to a connecting plate 24 which extends laterally from an arm 26. The plate 24 parallels the dowel and extends from the arm 26 in the same direction as the dowel. The arm 26 extends longitudinally behind the reaches 20 and 22 and has a ring 28 formed on its upper end, the ring being rotatably circumposed on the dowel 14 behind the loops.

Abody 30, which may be of any nature, type or simulative of any natural objector the like is mounted on the reaches. As shown, the body 30 is in the form of a human body having outstretched arms 32 and 34. The arms are formed with oblique Openings 36 and 38, through which the reaches 20 and 22 are passed. The openings 36 and 38 are convergent, upwardly considered, and divergent, downwardly considered. In the at rest position of the body and reaches, the portions of the reaches above and below the body are substantially parallel, the reaches being diverted by the oblique passages or openings 36 and 38. In such positions, shown in full lines in Fig. 1, the reaches are both equally tight. When the connecting plate 24 is swung to the left in Fig. l, the reach 20 is slackened and the reach 22 is tightened so that the body is turned about its arm 34 on the tightened reach, such arm forming a pivot for the body. The tightened reach 22 works as a definite lever by turning the body so that the opening 38 has to be in line with the tightened reach and the tightened reach thereby swings the arm 32 and adjoining side of the body upwardly on the slackened reach 20. Thus, the arm 34 has more or less stayed on the same spot on reach 22 but the arm 32 has moved upward a certain distance on the reach 20. Thus, it is the relationship of the oblique openings 36 and 38 to the alternately slackening and tightening reaches 20 and 22 which produces the upwardly climbing motion of the 3 body. Obviously, as the connecting plate 24 swings back to the center, the body will assume its neutral or at rest position and then the body will again be canted as the connecting plate continues its swing to the right of the neutral position or to the dotted position shown in Fig. 1 to the right of the solid line position. The pendulous motion of the connecting element and bodily pendulous motion of the reaches 20 and 22 produces the alternate slackening and tightening thereof. It is obvious that-the flexible element looped around the dowel creates a strong friction so that the upper ends of the reaches are in effect fixed. In this respect, the reaches could be separate elements and have their upper ends otherwise fixed to the support. For example, the separate upper ends of the reaches could be fastened to the plate at points spaced radially, right and left of the dowel, and at the same horizontal line therewith. In such event, it can be seen that the section 2t in the dotted position to the left of the full line position would be slackened because the section 22 would be moved further away from its upper fixed point. In the position to the right of the full line position of Fig. l, the opposite would be true. Of course, the sections would be of equal length.

In Figs. 3 and 4, an example along this line is illustrated but here there is additional tightening means provided. As shown therein, the upper ends of the separate flexible elements 40 and 42 are fixed to pins 44 and 46 which project laterally from the support 48 and which are die posed parallel with and above and to each side of the dowel S0. The arm 52 has its upper end rotatably journalled on the dowel 50 and carries the lateral connecting plate 54 at its lower end, the lower ends of the elements 40 and 42 being secured to such plate 54. The body 56 is identical to the body 30 and is similarly formed and disposed on the elements 40 and 42. The placement of the anchoring pins 44 and 46 for the upper ends of the elements 40 and 42 above the dowel permits the utilization of the dowel as an additional tightening factor.

Thus, the fixed ends of the elements 40 and 42 are higher than the pivot point for the arm, that is, the dowel 50. Therefore, on each pendulous swing, the flexible elements are alternately caught by the dowel and are stretched to final tautness thereover, since it lies between the elements and is in the path of the bodily movement thereof in the one or the other swinging motion. In other words, the element 40, when the arm swings to the right, is caught by the dowel 50, while the element 42, when the arm swings to the left, is caught by the dowel 50.

With either forms, the pendulous swing motion is the causative factor in the upward movement of the body on the reaches or flexible elements. One sideway push of the connecting plate will start the pendulous motion and bodily swinging motion of the reaches or flexible elements and the pendulous motion will produce an alternate tightening and slackening of the reaches or flexible elements to move the object upwardly thereupon.

Of course, it is to be understood that instead of fixing the dowel, in the form of Figs. 1 and 2, it is contemplated that such may be rotated, as disclosed in my earlier application, by a pendulous motion and that such rotation would eifect the movement of the body if the connecting plate were fixed against bodily movement.

It is to be further understood that it is contemplated that the connecting plate may assume various shapes and be simulative of various objects, so that figures and the like decorations can be added thereto to enhance its attractiveness and to equip it for resemblance of particular objects or scenes and that tse body may be likewise formed and decorated in many ways. The essential factor is that the climbing action of the body is produced by a pendulous motion so that whether either the dowel is turned to and fro by means of a pendulum fixed to it, while the lower ends of the reaches are held fixed, or whether the reaches are bodily swung to and fro, while the dowel is fixed, the relation between the dowel and the reaches is the same.

Therefore, while the best known forms of the present invention have been illustrated and/or described, other forms may be realized as coming within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An amusement device comprising a support, a pair of elongated flexible elements depending in side by side fashion from the support and being of equal length, an arm depending from the support and disposed intermediate the flexible elements, means attaching the arm to the support for pendulous swinging movement of the arm about a horizontal axis, means fixing the lower ends of the flexible elements to the arm so that when the arm swings, the flexible elements are alternately slackened and tightened, and a body having a pair of oblique openings formed in side by side fashion, said body being vertically disposed with the openings being substantially vertically arranged, one of the flexible elements being disposed through one of the openings and the other flexbile element being disposed through the other opening so that when the flexible elements are alternately slackened and tightened, the body is moved in a side to side upward climbing action.

2. An amusement device as claimed in claim 1, wherein a dowel projects outwardly from the support, said flexible elements constituting side by side reaches of a single flexible element which is centrally looped around the dowel and said means attaching the arm including means on the arm rotatably circumposed on the dowel.

3. An amusement device as claimed in claim 1, wherein pins project outwardly from the support and are disposed in horizontal alignment, said flexible elements having upper ends secured to the pins and said means attaching the arm including a pivot pin projecting outwardly from the support and on which the arm is pivoted.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Germany Oct. 16, 1924 

